Scary Tales (2) (motioning to a dark street) The house is up this road I believe. JANE Whose house? MIKE The house where that gas station attendant said my wife lives now. The two approach a white two story very prestigious house. They walk up the stoop and ring the bell. A cute little girl answers to greet them. LITTLE GIRL (in a silly friendly voice) Hello? What do you want? MIKE (enchanted by the girl smiling) Hi there. Is Francis home? LITTLE GIRL Francis? Isn't that my mommy's name? MIKE (surprised) Your what? Just then, Frances, several other children and a man come to the door. MIKE Francis? Is that you? It's me, Mike. FRANCIS (shaking her head in doubt) Mike? It can't be. Francis faints into the arms of the man. MAN (concerned) Who the hell are you? MIKE I'm her husband mike. Who are you people? MAN (loudly) Her husband, are you nuts? IM her husband and this is our children? Mike's eyes fill with tears. In shock he starts falling back almost to faint as Jane helps him stand up. They back away from the house with the felling that they should not be there as the husband and kids try to revive Francis. INT. PENN STATION TRACKS-SAME NIGHT Many hours later most of the passengers have returned to the same platform where the train is parked. They gossip among themselves as the conductor steps out to console them. MIKE (sad and angry to the conductor) My wife married another man, three children. WOMAN PASSENGER 1 (to the conductor) We should have listened to you, we don't belong here, everything is different, everything is wrong. MAN PASSENGER 4 We've lost our lives, now what should we do? CONDUCTOR 1 (in a commanding voice to the crowd) The only chance I think we have is to re-board the train and leave. Perhaps, maybe we can get home to the right time. BLACK STEWARD I'm sorry you all nice white folk, but IM not going back with you. Here, blacks are treated equal. CONDUCTOR 1 (reasoning with the steward) Do you realize what you may be giving up, forty years of your life. BLACK STEWARD (in tears) I know, but I cant, not after this. In the distance the conductor notices a team of railroad officials and policemen storming towards the train slowly. CONDUCTOR 1 (hurrying) Well whoever is coming, board now, the authorities are aware of this train. Quickly the passengers load the train, the engines start and the train begins to pull away. The police scream and shout banging on the train at the conductor ordering him to stop. Ignoring them he speeds up as they draw their pistols and take aim at the back of the train they can see it in the distance down the tunnel disappear by the same electrical supernatural disturbance as before. EXT.OLD WEST TRAIN STATION YEAR 1898-DAY The train zooms into the station and crashes into an old steam train that was parked there. The older train is cracked and disabled, smoke rises from its chimney. A small crowd watches the incident in amazement. The driver of the old west train begins to flip out. DRIVER (shouting) Son of a bitch! Doggonnit!! Look at my train, I'm gonna whip some tail! The sheriff and deputy approach the train. DEPUTY Sheriff what is it? SHERIFF Seems to be some sort of train. DEPUTY (pointing at an insignia on the train that says 1935) Sheriff, look at this. DRIVER (shouting from the window of the front car) Sheriff! What in bijesus is that! SHERIFF (gestures toward the driver) Be quiet. This is a police matter. The sheriff and deputy draw their guns from their holsters. SHERIFF Now I'm gonna see what's in there. Cautiously, the sheriff and deputy enter the mysterious train. Inside they are shocked to find crying babies scattered across the seats. Apparently, the passengers have de-aged with the timeline and most of them are either babies or infants and perhaps some don't even exist yet. A few seats away he sees a naked little girl playing in a wheelchair. SHERIFF (whispering to himself) Oh, my god. The sheriff with his gun in hand walks down the cars looking for more answers, he comes upon a woman's dress on a seat. Lifts it up and is shocked when he sees a baby fetus underneath trying to breathe. EXT.LOCAL HOUSE-DAY Quiet secluded home surrounded by trees. There are several horse and wagons parked outside. As we zoom to the window we see woman inside taken care of the babies. INT.LOCAL HOUSE MAIN ROOM-DAY A type of nursery has been set up by the town people temporarily. The sheriff pats a woman on the back. WOMAN 1 Sheriff, how long will this last? SHERIFF (to the woman) I don't know. Do the best you can until we can figure this thing out. The sheriff and several deputies exit. They hop on their horses and ride away. EXT.DIRT ROAD-SUNSET The sheriff and his deputies ride their horses down a long, straight, empty stretch of dirt road that leads up between two small mountains. Suddenly, they are approached by an older man on horseback. It is the town doctor and scientist. He motions to stop the men. DOC (worried) Men, I think I know what's happening here. I've been studying that train all afternoon and believe it came from the future. DEPUTY 2 (laughing) Shit, Doc I think you lost your marbles. The other deputies laugh as well and prepare to depart. The sheriff motions to stop them. SHERIFF (serious) Shut-up. Go ahead Doc. DOC Some supernatural force has transported that future train here to our time. The people on the train were older when they boarded in the future. Some how, they have become their current age. You can laugh and ridicule me, but it is the only logical explanation. A few of the deputies quietly laugh. SHERIFF (to his deputies) Now wait a minute boys, the Doc may have something here. DEPUTY 3 (sarcastically) Come on sheriff that's crazy. SHERIFF (to deputy 3) Crazy! You got a better explanation! The laughing stops and the deputies are silent. SHERIFF So Doc if this is true, then somewhere in the world are these same exact babies as they were naturally born. DOC (intrigued) Yes, sheriff. Duplicates. Yes, duplicates would exist right now if this is true. DEPUTY 4 You mean two of the same person exist? DOC Yes, yes, but this would be nearly impossible to prove. DEPUTY 2 (to the Doc) So if these babies die, then everything would work out fine because they exist somewhere else right now. DEPUTY 1 Yeah, they would grow up with their parents as normal and nobody would even know or care. DOC (thinking hard) No, this is no solution. If those babies die then their other selves would simply grow up board this train again some time in the future and create a time-loop. SHERIFF (curious) A time-loop? DOC Yes. Think about it. Consider this possibility, they grow up board the train and comeback here again to us in 1898 over and over again looping the same event back and forth through time. DEPUTY 3 (confused) This is weird. The camera slowly moves in on the sheriff's face as the Doc speaks and the sheriff feels the weight of the situation resting on his shoulders. DOC If they die we start the loop over again and if they live and continue to grow up and live we will have created duplicates of the original. Exactly the same people physically but they will have completely different personalities and lives. EXT.OLD WEST TRAIN STATION-NIGHT The local town people stand around the future train and gossip, pointing at it and making presumptions about its origin. Some children stare at it as the moonlight reflects off its silvery steel body adding to its awe. INT.SHERIFF"S OFFICE-SAME NIGHT The sheriff, his deputies and a few other concerned citizens are in a meeting discussing the situation. The sheriff sits at his desk surrounded by the men. CITIZEN 1 (to the sheriff) Sheriff, what are we supposed to do make the woman of this town raise those babies? SHERIFF (to everybody) No, I have an idea. But we must have hope. Well need a volunteer. CITIZEN 2 For what sheriff? SHERIFF To drive that train out here and hopefully it will travel back to where ever it belongs. CITIZEN 3 (quietly interrupting) I'll do it sheriff. My wife and boy died of the pox last season. I have nothing left here. Maybe this is my purpose now. SHERIFF Very well. Deputies, make arrangements first thing in the morning to derail the damaged locomotive and I will begin preparations for the trip. EXT.OLD WEST TRAIN STATION-EARLY MORNING A few days later the broken locomotive had finally been removed from the tracks. Many women load the babies safely onto the future train. The entire town crowds the station to witness the event. The sheriff shakes the volunteer's hand. SHERIFF (handing him a gun) Take this, you may need it. (a brief pause) And good luck. The volunteer cautiously boards the first car and starts the engines. In fear, the crowd backs away from the train as it begins to pull away. The whistle blows as the train picks up speed and takes off. Soon, in the distance the train disappears again. INT. FUTURISTIC TRAIN STATION-YEAR 2012 The train pulls into a quiet station. There are no people on the platform at the time. The train comes to a stop. A homeless man lies nearby in a pile of dirty belongings and drinking a bottle of whiskey. HOMELESS MAN (staggering towards the train) What the fuck? He approaches the last car in the chain as it is the nearest to him, the door opens and the skeleton of the woman in the wheelchair falls to the outside ground in front of him, the empty wheelchair rolls back a few feet. In pure shock the homeless man screams for help. The camera slowly moves along to view the windows of the other cars leading up to the front car. Inside we see the remnants of all the doomed passengers as their skeletons lay in their chairs. One skeletons head and hand lean up against the window signaling one passenger's last glance out of the window for hope. EXT.FRONT VIEW OF THE DRIVER CAR The camera zooms into the eye of the driver's skull. Their fate had been sealed now. EXT.MAP ROUTE HIGHLIGHTED IN RED Once again the route of the trip is highlighted in a deadly red showing the path of the doomed train. FADE OUT Title Card: "The Dark Devil" FADE IN EXT.DESERT MOUNTAIN AREA-DAY Time and place unknown. A deserted area in the hills. Seemingly isolated from any type of civilization. The intense sun beams down on the desert, the sky is filled with yellow sunlight making everything look like a bright film negative. A young man is running in fear, he is sweating, exhausted and looks very weak as if he has not had any food or water in days. YOUNG MAN (panting, nervously looking behind his back as he runs) Oh my god, oh my god. I'm not gonna make it. From behind a rock his stalker steps out. It is a huge and muscular robot like machine made out of red steel. Standing about eight feet tall, with a devil like helmet head with steel horns and black demon like eyes. It carries at its side a sophisticated machine gun that matches its body armor. EXT.A NEARBY HILLSIDE The Dark Devil approaches closer as the exhausted man collapses to the dirt. Without warning the devil grabs him by the neck and squeezes until blood is drawn from his mouth, eyes and nose. The machine drops him abruptly pulls out its gun and blows his head clean off. The Dark Devil holds the machine gun up and proudly stands beside the dead body. The Dark Devil then presses a small switch on its wrist controls which makes its legs seal together like a missile. Exhaust comes out and the Robot propels into the sky. EXT.TOP SECRET BUILDING-SAME DAY The Dark Devil lands nearby a secluded Government like building with no windows. It walks up the main stairs as the huge steel doors open in perfect synchronization with the devils pace. INT.DARK HALLWAY INSIDE SECRET BUILDING The Dark Devil storms down a very long and dark hallway with neon lights located only about every twenty-five feet. It's armor shell body changes color to a darker shade, a chameleon like camouflage to match its surroundings. INT.GENERAL'S OFFICE The hallway leads to a main office at the end of the hall. No other doors or exits are seen. The office is also dark, very clean and mostly empty except for a large black glass desk at the tip of the rectangular shaped room where a general like man in an advanced uniform sits. The Dark Devil enters. GENERAL (to the robot) Is he dead? The Devil raises it's arm, the arm's mechanical form changes into a missile launcher. The head of the victim comes shooting out and lands on the general's desk. The general looks down at the head. He reaches into a compartment and hands to the devil a vinyl black folder with a picture of a bold man on it, it is also labeled with the neon text "TOP SECRET X-1097700". GENERAL Here is your next target. Read it this time. The Devils eyes look at the general angrily. EXT.OUTSIDE OF SECRET BUILDING-LATE DAY The Dark Devil shoots off into the sky like a rocket. INT.GENERAL'S OFFICE GENERAL (speaking into a hidden wrist speaker) I don't trust her anymore, call the De-meter. EXT.DARK DEVIL'S HOME The Dark Devil lands in front of it's home. It is a simple steel structure with no windows nestled into the desert sand, hidden from sight. INT.DARK DEVIL'S HOME The robot steps into the main room, presses a switch on its wrist controls. A light shines through a split in the robot's side as the robotic suit opens up and a beautiful naked woman with blonde hair steps out of it. She walks into the futuristic bathroom and takes a sonic shower. Afterwards, she presses a button on the wall and a wall bed pops out, she enters the bed and goes to sleep. EXT.DARK DEVIL HOME-MORNING NEXT DAY The blistering sun rises on the horizon above the Dark Devils House. INT.DARK DEVIL BEDROOM The beautiful blonde wakes up and climbs into her massive robot suit, which is parked in a sort of incubator chamber. A bar wraps around her head turning her eyes into the devils and enhancing her vision. The robotic arms wrap into her human arms as the robotic suit closes. She stomps out of the incubator with force presses a few buttons on the suits wrist controls, a ceiling hatch opens. EXT.DARK DEVIL HOME The Dark Devil flies straight up into the sky from the house roof. She seems to disappear into the yellow sky. EXT.DEEP IN THE DESERT-SAME DAY A blue tank like robot suit with long steel devil horns is moving fast through the desert grounds in a search mode. It's tank wheels mow through the desert sand with ease. With its advanced vision the unit spots the Dark Devil in front of a house a few miles away. BLUE DEVIL (in a robotic voice) Target identified EXT.HOUSE IN DESERT The Dark Devil stands outside of the house preparing its weapon arsenal. In a nearby window the bald man is looking out at her in fear. BOLD MAN (shouting from the window to the Dark Devil) I'll give you anything you want, just don't kill me please! INT.HOUSE IN DESERT Inside the home the bald man is on the floor below the window holding his ears shut as the Dark Devil shoots a missile through his window above his head, which blows up the living room. EXT.HOUSE IN DESERT Outside the Blue Devils body transforms from a tank form into body form on two legs. The unit standing several feet taller than the Dark Devil sneaks up behind her. The Dark Devils eyes slightly roll to her left as she senses that someone is behind her. The Blue Devil raises it's arms which have integrated blowtorch like tubes on the end and blast the Dark Devil from behind with a huge steady fireball. Angrily, the Dark Devil turns around, her suit is charcoaled and smoking. BLUE DEVIL (picking up the Dark Devil by the neck and squeezing) You are already classified terminated While being held up in the air the Dark Devil sneaks out a small rifle and blast a shot into the Blue Devils eye, but this does very little damage and only manages to upset it. BLUE DEVIL (slamming the dark Devil to the ground) Foolish! The Blue Devil stomps it's foot into her face which cracks the helmet and damages the suits eye. BLUE DEVIL Your shit! The Blue Devil smacks her helmet back and forth with its backhand while she lay on the ground. BLUE DEVIL (pushing its face close to the Dark Devils) Your weakness surprises me. Suddenly, the Dark Devil grabs the horns of her assailant and smashes her head into it. While holding the Blue Devil close to her a sneaky robotic hand like device pops out of a hole on her suit and activates the rocket switch on the Blue Devils backpack. The Blue Devils rockets light up and the suit is sent flying up into the air leaving behind a cloud of smoke. From the broken window of the house the bald man watches the battle. The Blue Devil comes flying straight back down with vengeance towards the Dark Devil preparing an arsenal of weapons, machine guns, rockets, knives and the like. Quickly, the Dark Devil flips upside down, stands on her hands and two huge knifes pop out from her legs measuring about four feet each. BLUE DEVIL (flying straight down fast towards the Dark Devil) Did you actually think that could stop me. As the Blue Devil zooms into attack it notices the knives sticking up from the Dark Devils legs. BLUE DEVIL (in shock) Oh-Oh. Going to fast to stop in time the Blue Devil flies straight into the knives causing a huge explosion, which completely destroys the Blue Devil suit. The burnt skeleton remains of its host fall out as the debris of the suit fall to the ground. The Dark Devils suit is also nearly destroyed, it cracks in half and falls to pieces as the nude blonde woman inside slips out uninjured upside down and does a gymnastic like slow turn onto her feet. A quarter of the Dark Devil suit still stands on the ground holding itself up with one hand while flames and smoke rise from it's shell. The bald man in the window looks outside. BALD MAN (Naive) It's a girl? He steps outside to confront her. BALD MAN Are you all right? The nude blonde picks up a rifle from the burning debris and shoots the bald man in the chest causing him to fall to the ground DEAD. With a heartless expression on her face she lights up a cigarette and walks away. EXT.POLICE STATION-AFTERNOON Passing traffic along a small town suburban highway in front of a police station. INT.POLICE STATION OFFICE Steve Delucia, a local family man with a mustache and glasses sits in a busy office with many work desks throughout while various policeman walk by. He grows impatient. STEVE (shouting) Is someone going to help me already!! In the hallway nearby two detectives in suits whisper to themselves as they look in at the yelling man. DETECTIVE 1 (approaching Steve, motioning to the other detective) Mister Delucia, I'm detective Heller this is my partner detective Phillips. STEVE (upset) Well it's about time. Have you got any more information on my missing wife, it's been almost a year now and I keep getting the run around from you guys. DETECTIVE 2 No sir. I'm sorry we have no new information at this time. STEVE (yelling) This is a bullshit investigation! DETECTIVE 1 Just calm down Mister Delucia, were doing everything we can to locate your missing wife. STEVE (yelling louder) That's the same bullshit I've been getting over the phone for the last eleven months! You guys aren't doing shit! I've been doing some investigating around myself and have spoken to her coworkers and friends and none of them even told me that they were interviewed by the police! DETECTIVE 2 (loudly to Steve) Now just a minute, don't you tell us how to do our jobs! STEVE (shouting louder) Screw you! I want answers! Specifics! What are your leads? What have you found out!
Copyright © 2003 Chris Hofmann |